I really perceive this to be an intellectual emergency, because the only people who are sure that there are right answers to moral questions are, for the most part, religious demagogues.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
So what I\u2019m arguing in my book is that we are actually free to define our terms in our conversation about morality in the same way we\u2019re free to define our terms on any other scientific topic.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Before looking to Dr. Harris\u2019s argument, what would you define as moral truth? What is the basis for morality?
\n<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\nSam Harris, of course, will not turn to religion to define morality. Iron age superstition, he feels, has little to add to the discussion. Morality, according to Dr. Harris, relates to the well-being of conscious creatures\u2014humans and animals. Moral good promotes such well-being, moral evil runs counter to such well-being. This is the basis for a rational, scientific morality.<\/p>\n
If science can make such a claim \u2013 then Dr. Harris suggests that we should, in fact enforce, or try to enforce that morality world wide. This doesn\u2019t mean exporting western culture \u2013 rather, it means exporting a scientific idea and ideal. He does acknowledge, however, that there may be many \u201cpeaks\u201d corresponding to optimal human and animal well-being. No one optimal form has preference over any other. But any situation that does not put forth human and animal well-being as paramount is immoral. The difference between that which forwards human and animal well being and that which does not defines universal human morality.<\/p>\n
Not only is it the most<\/em> valuable thing in the universe, I argue it\u2019s the only<\/em> thing of value: the possibilities of having increasingly good experience.<\/p><\/blockquote>\nIf this is morality \u2013 human and animal well being \u2013 then no church, no religion, is moral. The aims are, Harris suggests, wrong. Modern secular liberalism of the live and let live variety is equally wrong. Who are we to condemn \u2013 oh\u00a0 say Islamic treatment of women \u2013 the educated, liberal, secular person asks. Harris suggests that we should, and in fact, must confront such behavior on moral grounds.<\/p>\n
Dr. Harris\u2019s definition of morality has merit, in fact it is not all that different from a Christian morality. However,\u00a0 his approach, his solution to the \u201cmorality problem,\u201d is inherently unscientific. He imposes this value ad hoc<\/em> to suit his purpose. He asserts that what he finds to be right and good is, in fact, ultimate right and good (we just know it in our gut). He then suggests that this should be spread throughout the world.<\/p>\nWhat do you think? Is Harris\u2019s suggested ground for morality valid? <\/strong><\/em><\/p>\nIs well-being of conscious creatures a reasonable alternative to religion? Is it scientific?
\n<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\nIf you wish to contact me directly you may do so at rjs4mail[at]att.net.<\/p>\n
You can subscribe to a full text feed of my posts at Musings on Science and Theology<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Sam Harris, author of The End of Faith has a new book The Moral Landscape: How Science Can Determine Human Values. As is the norm he is out giving interviews and building interest in the book. In an interview at AVClub he outlines his purpose in writing the book and some of his conclusions. In this latest offering Harris tackles the question of morality. He finds the abdication of moral framework by science and scientists to be unfortunate to say the least. Such an abdication leaves a place for religion. This is something that Dr. Harris finds regrettable.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":198,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[480],"tags":[51,2388,2014,17076],"class_list":["post-9234","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-science-and-faith","tag-atheism","tag-moral-law","tag-sam-harris","tag-science-and-faith"],"yoast_head":"\n
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![\"\"](\"https:\/\/wp.patheos.com\/community\/sites\/40\/2010\/09\/Thinker.jpg\" "\\"Thinker\\"")
<\/a>Secularists and more educated liberal types, by and large, think that there\u2019s just no such thing as moral truth; morality is either purely a product of culture, or we make it up, or it has just been drummed into us by evolution and there\u2019s nothing about our intuitions of right and wrong and good and evil that actually connects to reality in any scientific sense.<\/p>\n